On April 17, the Board of Trustees approved the use of State General Obligation Bonds to replace the videoboard and lower-dome seating in Gampel Pavilion.
A budget of $10 million was approved and the goal is to finish renovations before the fall 2024 basketball season. This will ultimately lead to a better experience for students and fans attending athletic events inside the dome.
Before the start of the 2024-2025 basketball season, Gampel will have a new and improved videoboard display. The screen is measured to be 120 by 20 feet, an upgrade compared to the previous 13 by 23 foot display.
Not only will live replays and away playoff games be much easier to see, but some old and overused inner bowl seats will be replaced. These retractable seats are roughly 30 years old and with brand new, modern seating, fans will be much more comfortable enjoying UConn basketball games.
Besides a roof repair project in 2017 catching a price tag of $10 million, Gampel has not seen much change.
When the dome opened in 1990, the original seating capacity held 8,241 people and the only improvement made was in 1995 when 1,641 additional seats were added, totaling 9,882.
The most recent seating change was seen in 2001 where 140 additional seats were added, bringing the seating total to 10,167.
Despite generating a lot of funding from events held in Gampel Pavilion, half of UConn’s athletic games are not played on the Storrs campus.
The other half of these home games are hosted at the XL Center in Hartford, Connecticut. Instead of generating additional revenue, UConn signed a $1.55 million contract that pays the XL center to host some of the university’s hockey and basketball games, according to the Hartford Business Journal.
To raise additional revenue for Gampel, UConn looks to sell pieces of its basketball court where some UConn legends have scored their most memorable points.
A piece of the court that was put on auction has started bidding at $2,500. This piece happens to be where former UConn women’s basketball player Sue Bird drained her iconic fadeaway floater to take down Notre Dame in the 2001 Big East Championship game.
Once the floor panel is sold, the money will be split between UConn and the Artsman Auction company, which brings in revenue for the university’s athletic renovations.
UConn Athletic Director David Benedict and Speaker of the House Matt Ritter have been conversing about a potential 50 to 100 million dollar Gampel renovation plan for the coming years, according to CT Insider.
